1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to refrigerators for food products. More specifically, the present invention relates to refrigerators for storing foods convenient to food preparers.
2. Discussion of Background
Food service in restaurants must be efficient. In particular, food must be prepared quickly and properly, and ingredients must be fresh both for better taste and for health reasons. Refrigeration helps maintain the freshness of many food items and is required for such perishable items as, for example, eggs.
In many restaurants, the level of business varies considerably during the typical day, and can include periods of greatly heightened activity during meal times. In order to prepare food items, there has to be a convenient supply of the items to be prepared. Yet, many items require refrigeration until just prior to preparation. If a supply of food items taken from a refrigerator to the food preparation area is more than needed, some food will be wasted as the leftover items are discarded. If the supply of food items taken to the food preparation area is less than needed, there may be delays in service as the exhausted supply is replenished.
Other food storage devices exist See, for example, the devices described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,409 issued to Stefanakis and U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,311 issued to Rastelli.
There remains a need for an apparatus that maintains food such as eggs at an appropriate temperature so that bacterial formation is retarded and which can be incorporated into a food preparation area with minimum difficulty and contribute to the efficient preparation of the food.